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A review by zober
A Fire Born of Exile: A Xuya Universe Novel by Aliette de Bodard
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I went in to this knowing nothing about this book other than that it was billed as a sapphic Count of Monte Cristo. I read the “The Mausoleum’s Children” by Aliette de Bodard earlier this summer and liked it enough to try the author's longer form writing, and I enjoyed this! I read The Count of Monte Cristo more than a decade ago, and remembered nothing about it. I looked up the plot earlier and think that layer adds to this book, but Fire Born of Exile thankfully also stands on its own. And I do love a queer sci fi retelling of a classic.
I love a good morally gray character. And I like that the plot here was very political. The political plotting honestly felt a bit straightforward though; I expected more layers to the machinations. There were a lot of plot-relevant characters, and most were interesting and unique. I like the world here - the concept of mindships (and how the culture includes them) is very cool. I will happily read more in this universe.
As a side note, while I thought this was a good and interesting book, the writing got a bit repetitive. The number of times "ceruse," "vermilion," and "brocade" were mentioned was honestly astounding. And this is also billed as a romance, which I guess fits, but the romantic plotline was by far the least interesting part of the book for me.
I love a good morally gray character. And I like that the plot here was very political. The political plotting honestly felt a bit straightforward though; I expected more layers to the machinations. There were a lot of plot-relevant characters, and most were interesting and unique. I like the world here - the concept of mindships (and how the culture includes them) is very cool. I will happily read more in this universe.
As a side note, while I thought this was a good and interesting book, the writing got a bit repetitive. The number of times "ceruse," "vermilion," and "brocade" were mentioned was honestly astounding. And this is also billed as a romance, which I guess fits, but the romantic plotline was by far the least interesting part of the book for me.